A journal

A journal (journey?) of alleged progress in the wonderful sport of archery

I only really had the idea of writing down some of my musings about my newfound pastime late in 2006, so I've picked up from when I can remember. All other notable competitions and achievements will be written up as time progresses.

To prevent this page from looking like a boring list of text, click on the links opposite for each piece of content. More will be added as we progress, and I'm sure some will inevitably overlap one another.

2008

Reflections on the outdoor season of 2008, and some of my achievements

I attained 4171 ranking points, better than I'd hoped for in points, but at 110th on the list, lower than I'd hoped for in terms of placing. But that's mainly due to more people entering ranking scores this year. Next year the aim is to break into the top 100.

Achieving my 1000 FITA Star, 900 York Rose, 950 EAF Cross (didn't make the 1050 as I'd hoped for), and FITA White Target Award for the FITA 70m. Didn't make Bowman though, but came within half a dozen points on several occasions. Handicap will probably go up at the end of the year, which is no bad thing really as it was artificially low this year.

I broke loads of Personal Bests last summer - the most pleasing of which were the York at Berkshire, the Beds FITA Star, plus all the individual distances of the FITA round (but not all at one shoot!) In scoring terms I've definitely made progress since 2007, and I'd like to think that will continue in 2009 too.

The highs and lows -

Highs - Achieving my Black Rose award at the Berkshire York (I do love the ground at Windsor, and always seem to shoot well there), winning my first ever H2H match at Oxford, and getting close to Bowman on several occasions. It proves to that I'm capable of it when everything falls into place correctly.

Lows - The Richmond Pagoda, and Andover Saxon shoot - hated every minute of these shoots and not sure I'll repeat them in a hurry. When nothing falls into place as it should, the whole day is miserable, and it's impossible to pull the score back. Interestingly, it rained at both of these shoots too, so maybe that was a contributing factor? My shoulder problems earlier in the season were a bind, and I had to find a way of finding decent form without injuring myself. I'm pleased to say that it's no longer painful, and shooting is no longer uncomfortable.

Shooting alongside some of the UK's best archers, and observing how they shoot and how they carry themselves at the big tournaments - people like Simon Terry, Michael Peart, Grant Womack in recurve, and Chris White and James Bingham in compound. All very different in their approach and styles, yet all extremely successful. What I find amazing is that simply refuse to accept anything other than perfection, and EXPECT 6" groups in the gold at 90m! I've learned a lot from watching these guys.

I'm looking forward to outdoors in 2009 now - there'll be more ranking shoots, but this time spread out more through the summer. Can we attain Bowman this year?